The Seattle Mariners will launch a bid to acquire left-hander Kazuhisa Ishii, who is to be put up for major league auction after 10 years with the Yakult Swallows of the Central League, baseball sources said Tuesday.
Kazuhisa IshiiSeattle, trying to regroup its pitching staff for next season, turned to Ishii after the 28-year-old received the green light from Yakult on his wish to play in the major leagues by using the so-called posting system this winter.
The commissioner's office of Major League Baseball will allow the teams to open bids for Ishii soon after resuming business on Wednesday, and the highest bidder will win the right to negotiate with him.
In the case of Seattle outfielder Ichiro Suzuki, Seattle won the negotiating right in November 2000 with a bid of over $13 million, which was paid to the Orix BlueWave. The deal was sealed with a three-year contract worth an estimated $14 million.
Seattle, which matched a single-season major league record with 116 wins in 2001 but lost in the American League Championship Series, is trying to fill the voids left by the off-season departure of 15-game winner Aaron Sele and setup man Jose Paniagua.
Ishii posted a 12-6 record with a 3.39 ERA in 2001 and helped Yakult win the Japan Series.
The Chiba native joined Yakult in 1992 as a first-round draft pick and has a 78-46 career record with a 3.38 ERA.